Department for Transport

Aircraft: Repairs and Maintenance

baroness randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have received a copy of the letter to the EU Transport Commissioner from Aircraft Engineers International, alleging that safety procedures instituted by European Aviation Safety Agency have been infringed in the UK because senior engineers are no longer required personally to inspect completed maintenance and repair work; and what is their response to that allegation.

baroness randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with theCivil Aviation Authorityabout what constitutes “verification” of repair and maintenance work on commercial aircraft, as set out in European Aviation Safety Agency rules and procedures.

baroness sugg: We are aware of the letter from Aircraft Engineers International (AEI) to the Commission. While the letter makes allegations about practices in some European states, it does not mention the UK. Under EU requirements a Certificate of Release to Service (CRS) is required before an aircraft can be flown after maintenance. The CRS certifies that the maintenance work has been properly carried out and, in most cases, it must be signed by a licensed engineer. The process for ensuring that work has been properly carried out will be detailed in each organisation’s maintenance exposition. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) oversees compliance with these regulations, including approval of maintenance expositions, as part of its oversight of maintenance organisations. The CAA is not aware of any evidence that the practices described by AEI are taking place in organisations that it has approved. Nor have audits undertaken by the European Aviation Safety Agency identified such practices as an issue in the UK.

Railways: Freight

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of a report produced by the Hanseatic Transport Consultancy, on behalf of the European Rail Freight Association, which stated that the economic losses incurred by logistics companies, rail operators, infrastructure managers and customers totalled over £2billion following the six week closure of the main North–South railway line in Rastatt in Germany; and what action they are taking to ensure the resilience of UK rail infrastructure to avoid similar closures and losses in the UK.

baroness sugg: Britain has one of the safest railways in Europe. We look to the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), as the independent railway safety regulator, to ensure the industry is meeting its safety duties and that it responds appropriately to any new issues or risks which are identified. In response to the closure of the line at Rastatt, Network Rail is working with other European Infrastructure Managers to develop a joint handbook on international contingency management. Network Rail works to build the resilience of its railway infrastructure by maintaining assets to an appropriate standard. Asset renewal plans are agreed with ORR each Control Period and are targeted to improve asset reliability and resilience. When major disruption does occur, Network Rail has contingency plans and recovery arrangements in place, with dedicated staff overseeing diversionary routes for rail freight.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Scientific Advisers: Allowances

the countess of mar: To ask Her Majesty's Government when allowances for members of Scientific Advisory Committees were last reviewed; and what are the differential rates of allowances for every relevant department’s committees in the 2017–18 financial year.

lord henley: Allowances for members of Science Advisory Committees are set by the government department that sponsors them. There has been no recent cross-government review of allowances. Information on differentials between allowances is not held by the Government Office for Science.

Fracking

baroness jones of moulsecoomb: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to establish national set back regulations for fracking plants; and what assessment they have made of medical studies indicating that health risks are modified by the geographical distance of residences from active shale gas extraction.

lord henley: There are no plans to establish national set back regulations for shale gas development. National Planning Policy is clear that when planning permission is granted for shale gas, the cumulative impact of shale sites must be considered. Local Authorities therefore have the power to assess and restrict the cumulative effects of shale sites, including any adverse impacts on the natural or historical environment. Public Health England also work with the regulators to ensure potential health impacts of operations are properly risk assessed as part of the planning and permitting process. Public Health England assessed the risk to human health of extracting shale gas in their June 2014 report. They evaluated available evidence on issues including air quality, radon gas, naturally occurring radioactive materials, water contamination and waste water. Public Health England’s review concluded that “… the potential risks to public health from exposure to emissions associated with shale gas extraction will be low if operations are properly run and regulated”. Public Health England continue to review evidence on the potential public health impacts of emissions associated with shale gas extraction and have not currently identified any significant evidence that would make it change its views stated in its Review of the Potential Public Health Impacts of Exposures to Chemical and Radioactive Pollutants as a Result of the Shale Gas Extraction Process (2014).   



Review: Pollutants from Shale Gas Extraction
(PDF Document, 702.93 KB)

Tidal Lagoons Independent Review

lord smith of finsbury: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they expect to publish a substantive response to the report of the Independent Review of Tidal Lagoons led by Charles Hendry; andwhat steps they are intending to take in order to ensure that the proposed Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon project can proceed.

lord henley: A response to the Hendry Review into the strategic case for tidal lagoons will be published shortly.

Business

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have madeof the effect that Brexit will have on start-ups' and small businesses' capability for business planning; and what steps, if any, they are taking to help such businesses through that process.

lord henley: As part of our preparations to leave the EU, BEIS runs an active programme of SME engagement.We regularly meet with SMEs and their representative bodies up and down the country, and abroad, to deepen our understanding of the views of small businesses owners and how Government may be placed to respond. We will continue to ensure government listens to the important voice of small and medium sized business.Our network of 38 Growth Hubs across England is providing access to information and advice to SMEs.

Motor Vehicles: Manufacturing Industries

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they intend to take following the recent downturn in UK car production.

lord henley: The UK automotive industry remains one of our great success stories. Global demand for UK designed, engineered and manufactured vehicles is strong and the industry is strong, with over 425,000 high quality, well paid jobs, both directly in vehicle manufacturing and through the supply chain, increasing wealth and prosperity across the country.Monthly car production figures are influenced by cyclical variations and short terms factors. Despite fluctuations in the monthly figures, annual car production has shown an overall upward trend over the last decade, with annual production in 2017 at the second highest output levels since the turn of the century.We are determined to ensure that the UK continues to be one of the most competitive locations in the world for automotive. Through our Industrial Strategy and landmark Automotive Sector Deal, we are working with industry to put the UK at the forefront of new automotive technologies to ensure the UK remains the destination of choice for future investment decisions.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Gaza: Hamas

baroness deech: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps, if any, they plan to take in response to the actions of Hamas in Gaza, including discrimination against women, public executions and other human rights breaches as reported by the Palestinian Independent Commission for Human Rights.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The UK proscribes the military wing of Hamas and maintains a no contact policy with Hamas in its entirety and condemns its acts contrary to human rights. The UK’s position on Hamas is clear: Hamas must renounce violence, recognise Israel and accept previously signed agreements. Hamas faces a fundamental decision about whether it is prepared to join efforts for peace, or whether it will continue to use terror and anti-Semitic incitement, with all the terrible consequences for the people of Gaza and Israel. The UK is supportive of the Palestinian Authority fully resuming government functions in Gaza, helping to improve the economic and humanitarian situation and ease the suffering of ordinary Gazans.

Gaza: Hamas

baroness deech: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that Hamas has diverted construction materials intended for Gaza to rebuild tunnels into Israel for terrorist purposes.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We remain deeply concerned by Hamas’ attempts to rearm and rebuild militant infrastructure, including the tunnel network, in Gaza. Hamas’ Rearmament undermines efforts to improve the situation in Gaza and harms the prospects for peace and stability in the Middle East.

Gaza: Egypt

baroness deech: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Egypt concerning its blockade of Gaza.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We regularly raise the closure of the Egypt-Gaza border, and its impact on the population of Gaza, with the Egyptian government. Most recently, our Deputy Head of Mission at the British Embassy in Cairo raised this with the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 12 April. We encourage Egypt to be as flexible as possible with regard to their plans for the Rafah border crossing.

Burma: Crimes against Humanity

baroness helic: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to support the creation of an independent, impartial, investigatory mechanism for Myanmar through the UN General Assembly, to investigate and document evidence of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Myanmar, as has been established in relation to the conflict in Syria.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: In line with the recommendations of the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Burma (Myanmar), the British Government is actively working on how to support better co-ordination between organisations collecting evidence and testimony in Bangladesh and the potential role for a UN mandated mechanism. Such a mechanism would require broad international support. As such we are discussing this with international partners, most recently in advance of the G7 Foreign Ministers meeting in Ottawa and at the Atrocity Prevention Working Group.

Yemen: Peace Negotiations

baroness hodgson of abinger: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to stop the conflict in Yemen and to encourage all parties to take part in UN peace negotiations.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: A political settlement remains the only means for bringing long-term stability to Yemen – there is no military solution to the conflict. The Yemeni parties must engage constructively and in good faith to overcome obstacles and find a political solution to end the conflict. The UK continues to play a leading role in international efforts to achieve this goal. In March this year, the UK proposed and coordinated a UN Security Council Presidential Statement (PRST) which was agreed on 15 March 2018. This PRST builds upon the previous one agreed on 15 June 2017, also sponsored and coordinated by the UK, it expresses deep concern about the humanitarian situation in Yemen, welcomes the appointment of the new UN Special Envoy for Yemen, and calls for the parties to agree steps towards a ceasefire. We will continue to work with our Yemeni, regional and international partners to ensure that words are converted into action. The UK fully supports – including through financial assistance – the work of the UN Special Envoy to facilitate progress towards peace talks. We convene the "Quad" format of British, American, Saudi and Emirati Foreign Ministers to discuss what practical steps can be taken to move the political process forward.

Yemen: Peace Negotiations

baroness hodgson of abinger: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will consider promoting a Resolution in the UN Security Council to seek to resolve the conflict in Yemen.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Government keeps under consideration whether a new UN resolution would support progress towards a political settlement in Yemen. Given the lack of agreement between the parties to the conflict at present, we judge that the best opportunity for progress comes through the appointment of Martin Griffiths as the new UN Special Envoy for Yemen. We encourage the parties to return to negotiations without pre-conditions and participate constructively in the UN-led political process. We were encouraged by the Envoy's presentation to the UN Security Council on 17 April and will do all we can, including through action at the Security Council if required, to support his efforts to facilitate a political solution to the conflict in Yemen.

Saudi Arabia: Females

lord hoyle: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Saudi Arabia about that country'sproposals to reform women's rights and about the position of women in society.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: On 7 March, the Prime Minister raised women's rights with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The UK is a firm supporter of the ongoing reforms in Saudi Arabia to allow women to participate more fully in Saudi society. These include the upcoming end on the ban on women driving and attending events in sports stadia. We regularly raise our concerns on the remaining barriers, including the guardianship system.

Pakistan: Primary Education

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the government of Pakistan made a commitment at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting to provide universal primary education.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: At the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, Pakistan joined other countries in encouraging the implementation of actions to provide the opportunity for at least 12 years of quality education and learning for girls and boys by 2030; it did not make a specific commitment to provide universal primary education. The Government of Pakistan is committed to fulfilling Sustainable Development Goal 4 which includes a target to “ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education.” At the Global Partnership for Education meeting in February 2017 Pakistan also recommitted to spend 4% of Gross Domestic Product on education by 2020.

Gaza: Israel

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they intend to take to protect Palestinian children from the use of live ammunition by Israeli forces in Gaza.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Minister for the Middle East raised the issue of the use of force with the Israeli Ambassador to the UK on 19 April and our Ambassador to Israel discussed this issue with the Israeli authorities on 24 April. It is plain that Hamas and their operatives have been exploiting these protests for their own benefit , and we have been clear that Israel has the right to secure itself against Hamas and other terrorist groups I also raised this issue during my visit to Israel on 11 April with the Israeli Minister for Regional Co-operation and with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We continue to urge Israel to show restraint and the Palestinians to ensure the protests are peaceful. There is a need to establish the facts, including why such a volume of live fire has been used and what role Hamas has played in the violence. We also reiterate the importance in particular of protecting minors. We welcome Israel’s commitment to investigate the conduct of operations and urge that its finding be made public, and if any wrongdoing is found, those responsible be held to account.

Department of Health and Social Care

Surgical Mesh Implants

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, inthe lightof the publication on 17 April of the national audit of patients who have undergone urologynaecological procedure for prolapse or stress urinary continence, including those where mesh, tape or equivalents were used, they now plan to suspend the use of pelvic mesh.

lord o'shaughnessy: The audit Retrospective Review of Surgery for Urogynaecological Prolapse and Stress Urinary Incontinence using Tape or Mesh was published by NHS Digital on 17 April 2018. Due to the importance of the issue, I have asked the Chief Medical Officer to seek the views of relevant National Health Service bodies, surgical societies, and patient groups on the implications of the statistics, and to report back within a month. The Government is open to further analyses where these could provide helpful insights. This will allow us to make an informed decision on the next steps we take.The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s (MHRA’s) current view is that from a regulatory perspective, based on all of the available evidence, the evidence does not support a restriction or ban of the use of these devices, except where stipulated in National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines. However, the MHRA and others have and will continue to keep the evidence under review, and will act as necessary to continue to ensure the safety of patients.

Surgical Mesh Implants

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to commission new guidelines from NICE in relation to hernia mesh.

lord o'shaughnessy: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has not been asked to develop any new guidelines in relation to hernia mesh.NICE has developed technology appraisal guidance on Laparoscopic surgery for inguinal hernia repair published on 22 September 2004. A copy of the guidance is attached. The guidance states that laparoscopic surgery is recommended as one of the treatment options for the repair of inguinal hernia, but it should only be performed by appropriately trained surgeons who regularly carry out the procedure. NICE reviewed the evidence in February 2016 and found no new evidence which would lead to a change in the existing recommendations. However, if NICE is notified of a significant change to the evidence base at any stage in the future, this could trigger a formal review proposal.



Laparoscopic surgery hernia NICE guidance
(PDF Document, 138.27 KB)

Surgical Mesh Implants

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of issues experienced by patients with mesh, whether they plan to improve the regulatory system for medical devices.

lord o'shaughnessy: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has been instrumental in agreeing new European Union legislation strengthening the regulatory system for medical devices. This legislation was agreed in 2017 and will take full effect in 2020.Some of the key changes the legislation will introduce are a substantial increase in scrutiny placed on implantable devices before they can be placed on the market, particularly the level of clinical evidence required; greater transparency of information available to clinicians and patients about the safety and performance of medical devices; and greater onus on manufacturers to monitor their devices in the post-market phase.

Surgical Mesh Implants

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are satisfied that patients are getting full information about the risks of mesh and that the use of terms such as tape, ribbon or sling are not misleading patients in seeking to avoid the term mesh.

lord o'shaughnessy: Patient information leaflets now used in the National Health Service have been developed in a lengthy and comprehensive process across England and Scotland and have been produced in collaboration with the Independent Review of Transvaginal Mesh Implants working group for Scotland. The leaflets provide detail about stress urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse, alternatives to surgery and the success rates, risk and complications of procedures.In addition, the informed consent process undertaken between clinicians and patients is central to providing information to patients while they are being given the opportunity to decide what treatment options are best for them.

Integrated Care Systems

lord bradley: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Integrated Care Systems have been established in England; and how many of those have agreed a shared financial control total.

lord o'shaughnessy: There are eight sustainability and transformation partnerships and two devolution sites currently operating as shadow integrated care systems. These systems are still in the process of developing their financial operating plans for 2018/19 and this information will form part of the authorisation process for becoming a ‘full’ integrated care system in 2018/19.Once authorised, and a ‘full’ integrated care system, we will then be in a position to advise on how many sites will be operating under a shared control total for 2018/19.

Neuroblastoma: Dinutuximab Beta

lord freyberg: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they anticipate that NICE will publish its evaluation of Dinutuximab Beta for the treatment of Neuroblastoma; and what discussions are taking place with EUSA Pharma following reports that it may withdraw the drug for UK patients unless funding can be found.

lord o'shaughnessy: The National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published draft technology appraisal guidance, National Institute of Health and Care Excellence Appraisal consultation document: Dinutuximab beta for treating neuroblastoma, for consultation on the use of dinutuximab beta for the treatment of high-risk neuroblastoma on 4 May. A copy of the draft guidance is attached. NICE’s draft guidance does not recommend use of dinuxtumab beta and stakeholders now have until 29 May to comment on NICE’s recommendations.NHS England invited EUSA Pharma to a stakeholder session in April 2018 to discuss dinutuximab beta for the treatment of neuroblastoma. We understand the company did not attend.



Neuroblastoma draft NICE guidance
(PDF Document, 415.47 KB)

Surgical Mesh Implants

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what actionthey are taking to prevent mesh from being offered routinely to patients as a first intervention.

lord o'shaughnessy: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published eight pieces of interventional procedures guidance that make a number of different recommendations about the safety and efficacy of various procedures using mesh to treat stress urinary incontinence or pelvic organ prolapse. They also emphasise the importance of informed consent and data collection, along with the requirement to report adverse events and the need for special training to undertake these procedures.The most recent update was an update of its Transvaginal mesh repair of anterior or posterior vaginal wall prolapse interventional procedures guidance published on 15 December 2017. NICE recommends that this procedure should only be used in the context of research. The updated NICE recommendation does not constitute a “ban”, but specifies that research should include details of patient selection, long-term outcomes including complications, type of mesh used and method of fixation, and quality of life. A copy of the guidance is attached.Additionally, NICE is extending its clinical guideline on the management of urinary incontinence in women to also include pelvic organ prolapse. The final guideline is expected to be published in 2019.



NICE guidance transvaginal mesh repair
(PDF Document, 89.95 KB)

Antibiotics

lord moonie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to consult antimicrobial clinical experts or representative expert bodies on any proposals designed to achieve de-linkage in respect of drug development in the UK.

lord o'shaughnessy: The Government is working with industry and experts to develop a health technology assessment led evaluation and reimbursement model that supports good antimicrobial stewardship. A reimbursement sub group of the Joint Government and Industry Antimicrobial Resistance Working Group is considering new reimbursement models.New models are contingent on a positive outcome of a study commissioned to help us better understand the value of new antimicrobials. This study is being undertaken through the Department’s Policy Research Programme, supported by an expert advisory group and is expected to report in the summer of 2018.

Antibiotics

lord moonie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessmentthey have made of international attempts to reform antibiotic reimbursement and of the potential for domestic level reform in that policy field.

lord o'shaughnessy: The United Kingdom supports the introduction of better incentives to bring new antimicrobials – in particular antibiotics - to market, including through reforms to pharmaceutical reimbursement models. Internationally, we are working with G20 partners to decide how best to deliver the 2017 G20 Leaders’ commitment to “examine practical market incentive options” this year. To inform our approach, the UK tracks the position of other countries and the European Union regarding market incentives, as well as recent research findings such as DRIVE-AB (Driving reinvestment in research and development for antibiotics and advocating their responsible use), looking at the societal value of new antibiotics. Nationally, the Government is working with industry and experts to develop a health technology assessment led evaluation and reimbursement model that supports good antimicrobial stewardship.

Department for International Development

Palestinians: International Assistance

baroness deech: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Palestine regarding the payment of salaries from international aid to convicted terrorists and their families.

lord bates: No UK aid is used for payments to Palestinian prisoners or their families. UK financial assistance to the PA is only used to help to pay the salaries of health and education public servants in the West Bank. Only named public servants - including nurses, doctors and teachers – from a pre-approved EU list are eligible.

Yemen: Humanitarian Aid

baroness hodgson of abinger: To ask Her Majesty's Government what support they are providing to the estimated 22.2 million Yemenis in need of humanitarian assistance.

lord bates: At the Yemen Pledging Event in Geneva on 3 April, the UK announced £170 million in response to the humanitarian crisis in Yemen for the financial year 2018/2019. This funding will include support for nutrition, clean water and sanitation, and meet the immediate food needs for 2.5 million Yemenis. The UK has provided over £400 million in bilateral support since the conflict began in 2015.

Yemen: Females

baroness hodgson of abinger: To ask Her Majesty's Government what support they are offering to the women of Yemen who areparticularly affected bythe conflict in that country.

lord bates: The current conflict has affected every man, woman, and child in Yemen. As always, however, it has had a disproportionate impact on women and girls. The incidence of violence against women is rising rapidly, including: sexual violence; domestic violence; forced early marriages; denial of resources; and psychological and emotional abuse. Furthermore, the UN estimates that more than 1 million pregnant women or nursing mothers are acutely malnourished.Our support to UNHCR provides cash assistance for vulnerable displaced women and female headed households to access protection services, including support for women and girls to prevent and respond to sexual violence, legal assistance and psychosocial counselling. The UK’s funding to UNICEF provides nutritional support to pregnant women or nursing mothers. The UK is also actively advocating for the inclusion of women in peace talks and encouraging political actors to take women’s views into account.

Gaza: Antibiotics

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effect of the reported shortage of antibiotics in Gaza.

lord bates: The UK Government is deeply concerned by the reported shortage of antibiotics in Gaza. According to the World Health Organisation, in February 2018 42% of the 516 essential drugs were completely depleted. This includes drugs used in emergency departments and critical units. The healthcare system in Gaza has been further strained by the recent casualties suffered during protests in Gaza, as well as the shortage of electricity and fuel, which could be life-threatening for some patients. As a result of this, the lack of antibiotics and constraints in accessing medical care outside of Gaza, patients face delays in accessing treatment, higher risks of infection and death, and the closures of key services.

South Sudan: Overseas Aid

the earl of sandwich: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much financial assistance has been given to the government of South Sudan in each of the last three years by (1) the Department for International Development; (2) the Foreign and Commonwealth Office; and (3) the Ministry of Defence, under separate or joint headings.

lord bates: The UK Government has not provided any bilateral financial assistance to the Government of South Sudan in any of the last three years. We ensure UK Aid is effective by working through a range of UN and international organisations who are experienced in operating in South Sudan, and who can deliver flexibly according to need.The table below shows total spend by the Department for International Development in South Sudan in each of the last three financial years. The top three sectors funded by DFID are humanitarian, health, and education.2015-162016-172017-18£189 million£169 million£163 million

Department for Education

Students: Disadvantaged

lord bird: To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the report by the National Union of Students, Class dismissed: Getting in and getting on in further and higher education, published on 23 April, what steps they plan to take to tackle the 'poverty premium' in tertiary education in order for working class students to excel in post-16 educational settings.

lord agnew of oulton: Widening participation remains a priority for this government, to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to benefit from further or higher education and apprenticeships regardless of their background. “Unlocking Talent, Fulfilling Potential,” published in December 2017, set out our plan for improving social mobility through education. A copy of this report was deposited in the Libraries of both Houses on 19 December 2017. The 16 - 18 Bursary Fund provides financial help to young people in further education who need help with costs such as travel and essential course equipment. Annual bursaries of up to £1,200 are available to vulnerable students such as those in care, care leavers and those receiving certain income or disability benefits in their own right. £130 million was allocated for discretionary bursaries to institutions in 2017 to 2018. A further £34 million was allocated in 2017 to 2018 for free meals. Changes to the student finance system have allowed more 18 year olds to enter higher education than ever before, including the highest ever number from disadvantaged backgrounds. Students from the lowest-income households starting their courses in 2018 to 2019 will have access to the largest ever amounts of cash-in-hand support for their living costs. Support for living costs increased by 10.3% for eligible students on the lowest incomes in 2016 to 2017 compared with the previous system, with further increases of 2.8 per cent for the current academic year. The government has announced a further 3.2 per cent increase in 2018 to 2019. A young person on an apprenticeship will receive at least the national minimum wage, which increased to £3.70 per hour in April 2018. The Apprenticeship Pay Survey 2016 estimates that the average gross hourly pay for apprentices in England was £6.70 an hour for level 2 and 3 apprentices and £9.83 for higher level apprenticeships. For apprentices claiming benefits in their own right, financial support is available for those on low incomes. Young people may be able to claim Universal Credit or Tax Credits to help with living costs. Universal Credit is also an in-work benefit, so young claimants in work on low wages, including apprentices under contract, can continue to claim housing support. Delivering more, better quality apprenticeships will make sure that more people from lower socio-economic backgrounds can gain the skills and training they need to build successful careers. The new funding model supports apprentices who are training on frameworks from disadvantaged areas by providing a cash payment to providers for training apprentices who live in the top 27 per cent of deprived areas. The Review of Post-18 Education and Funding aims to ensure that everyone from every background can access tertiary education. There will be an extensive programme of engagement with stakeholders and experts, including students and recent graduates. An independent panel will publish their report at an interim stage before the government concludes the overall review in early 2019.

Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they plan to publish the draft regulations and public consultation on the new schools curriculum in relation to statutory sex and relationship education and PHSE.

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what resources have been made available to train teachers on the new curriculum in relation to statutory sex and relationship education and PHSE; and whether they have paid regard to the availability of teachers in designing this training.

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to commission organisations, including the PSHE association and the Sex Education Forum, with knowledge and expertise in statutory sex and relationship education and PSHE to provide teacher training on the new curriculum.

lord agnew of oulton: It is important that schools are able to deliver high quality teaching, and we are using evidence to determine what resources, training or other support should be provided. The department conducted a thorough and wide-ranging engagement process, including a call for evidence, to help shape the new subjects of relationships education in primary schools, relationships and sex education in secondary schools, and on the future status of personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education. The department received over 23,000 responses to the call for evidence, which closed on 12 February 2018. During the engagement process, the department spoke with a wide range of interested stakeholders, including teaching unions, the Sex Education Forum and the PSHE Association. Discussions included exploration of the support schools will need to deliver quality subjects. The department is currently considering the responses to the call for evidence, and representations through the engagement process, to help develop draft regulations and guidance, as well as school support options. We plan to publish the results of the call for evidence, alongside a consultation on the draft regulations and accompanying statutory guidance shortly, before laying the regulations in the House for debate.

Home Education

lord storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many local authorities run voluntary registration schemes for children educated at home; and what is their assessment of how effectivesuch schemesare.

lord agnew of oulton: Information regarding the number of local authorities that run voluntary registration schemes for children educated at home is not held centrally. We are aware that some local authorities, such as Birmingham, offer online guidance to home educators. However, in the consultation and call for evidence, published on 10 April, the department is seeking information on existing registration schemes. The government response document, which will be published after the close of consultation, will include information on responses received.

Ministry of Justice

Ministry of Justice: Databases

lord harris of haringey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of theMinistry of Justice'sdata is hosted (1) in the UK, and (2) overseas.

lord keen of elie: We estimate that 90% of the data held by the MOJ is hosted in the UK, and the remaining 10% overseas. No standard methodology exists for calculating this figure, and as such a significant margin of error should be assumed.

Ministry of Defence

Tornado Aircraft

lord kennedy of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they expect to take the Tornado aircraft completely out of service.

earl howe: I refer the Noble Lord to the answer my hon. Friend, the Minster for Defence Procurement (Guto Bebb) gave in the House of Commons to the hon. Member for Llanelli (Nia Griffith) on 23 April 2018 to Question 136226.



136226 - WQnA extract on Tornado Aircraft
(Word Document, 24.8 KB)

Department for Work and Pensions

Universal Credit

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking to improve the administration of Universal Credit, including to ensure that Universal Credit and other benefit payments are made promptly.

baroness buscombe: Payment timeliness has improved since the early days of rollout and our latest data shows that around 80 per cent of new claims are paid in full and on time. The Department’s internal data shows that for many cases where full payment is not made on time by the end of the first assessment period, this is as a result of unresolved issues: claimants have not signed their Claimant Commitment or passed identity checks, and the others have outstanding verification issues, such as for housing, self-employed earnings and childcare costs. Whilst their verification is ongoing, many of these claimants receive a part payment for those elements of the claim that have been resolved. We have always been clear that we will deliver Universal Credit in a way that allows us to continue to make improvements as it is rolled out. We have already done this, such as by modifying the rollout plan following the £1.5 billion package of measures that were introduced in Autumn Budget 2017. This has allowed Universal Credit rollout to continue safely and securely. To date, we have successfully rolled out Universal Credit Full Service to 264 Jobcentres and prior to each rollout, we carry out a range of implementation activities to ensure each site is well prepared for the arrival of Universal Credit. Since the autumn of 2017, we have announced a series of changes to the administration of Universal Credit. These include: converting our enquiry helplines to freephone numbersabolishing the 7 day waiting period, thus reducing the time that some claimants wait to receive their first paymentincreasing the amount of an advance payment that a claimant can apply for from the start of their claim, from 50 per cent to 100 per cent of their indicative awardextending the period over which an advance payment is recovered from 6 to 12 monthsproviding new Universal Credit claimants who are already receiving support towards their housing costs an additional payment of two weeks of their housing benefit, to support them as they transition to universal credit We plan to publish regular national statistics on Universal Credit, including payment timeliness, in the near future. This data is currently going through quality assurance clearance procedures in line with the National Statistics and Official Statistics publication standard.

Pensions: Self-employed

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps, if any, theyare taking to addressthe declinein the proportion of self-employed people who are actively saving into a pension.

baroness buscombe: We are working to deliver the Government’s manifesto commitment to improve pension participation and retirement outcomes amongst self-employed people. In December 2017, we published a review of automatic enrolment (AE), Maintaining the Momentum, setting out our position on the self-employed and retirement saving.The self-employed represent a highly diverse group of around 15 per cent of the workforce amongst whom pension coverage varies significantly. The December Review recognised that while a significant proportion of the 4.8 million self-employed individuals in the UK have good levels of saving and preparation for later life, there are significant numbers of self-employed people are under saving, or at risk of under saving for retirement.We are investigating the most effective ways to address this, learning from the principles and successful roll-out of AE to appropriately target interventions and understand what works, and we are utilising pensions’ industry expertise. DWP and HMT held a recent innovation event with the Association of British Insurers (ABI), exploring how technology and existing financial products could be part of the solution to enabling self-employed people to build retirement savings for their later life. Government will continue to test and develop targeted interventions for the self-employed before setting out our proposals to implement workable solutions at scale.

Occupational Pensions

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking to support those businesses that will find it difficult to manage the increase in minimum contributions for automatic enrolment pensions for their staff.

baroness buscombe: Automatic enrolment was introduced to address the fact that millions of people were not saving enough for their retirement, and with the aim of making saving for later life normal for most people in work. It has been a great success with over 9.5 million workers enrolled into pension saving and more than 1.1 million employers having met their duties to date. Reforms on this scale represent significant change, and we particularly recognise the crucial role that employers of all sizes are playing in delivering them. The independent Making Automatic Enrolment Work review in 2010 specifically considered the impact of the policy on employers and changes to reduce burdens were implement in the Pensions Act 2011.The planned increases to the statutory minimum contributions - known as phasing - were built into the automatic enrolment reforms from the start. The initial minimum employer contribution of 1 per cent increased to 2 per cent in April 2018. An employer is free to pay more than the minimum at any time, and many are already doing so. There has been a long lead in time to enable employers and individuals to prepare for these increases, with support and communications from the Pensions Regulator and DWP. The increased contributions were scheduled to coincide with changes to take home pay which normally take place at the start of the tax year, to help minimise the administrative burden for employers.Government is closely monitoring the impact of the increases on both employers and individuals to inform our approach to supporting the second planned increase in contributions from April 2019.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Forestry

lord clark of windermere: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions ministers have had with forestry stakeholders concerning forestry policy post-Brexit.

lord gardiner of kimble: Ministers recognise the opportunities that leaving the EU offers a range of forestry stakeholders and have met a number of them. Defra officials have been working closely with forestry stakeholders, including through a recent event organised by the Forestry Commission, attended by more than 100 people representing a wide range of land owner and forestry interests.

Timber

lord clark of windermere: To ask Her Majesty's Government whatassessment they have made of the gap between the actual supply of wood coming to the market and the forecast availability of wood over the last two years for which figures are available.

lord gardiner of kimble: The Forestry Commission’s 50 year forecast of softwood timber availability for Great Britain estimates that 16.5 million cubic metres of softwood was available for harvest annually in the period 2013–2016. In 2015 and 2016 12.6 million cubic metres of softwood timber was estimated to have been produced. Hardwood supply chains are relatively poorly developed, which makes it much harder to forecast likely harvesting levels accurately. The ‘50 year forecast of hardwood timber availability’ for Great Britain, which is not based on all broadleaved woodland but only on the area of broadleaved woodland with evidence of recent management, estimated that 0.4 million cubic metres of hardwood would be available for harvest annually in the period 2013 – 2016. This forecast is thought to have been an under estimate of availability because it was estimated that 0.63 million cubic metres was produced in 2015 and 0.66 million cubic metres in 2016. This should not be mistaken for any over exploitation of Great Britain’s broadleaved woodland. This is because this estimated harvest represents less than 12% of the estimated annual increment of 5.7 million cubic metres. The annual increment is the volume of additional hardwood that Great Britain’s broadleaved woodlands grow each year.

Tree Felling

lord clark of windermere: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much timber was (1) approved for felling from Forest Plans and Felling Licences, and (2) actually felled, in the last five years.

lord gardiner of kimble: The Forestry Commission’s estimate of volume approved for felling in Woodland Management Plans and Felling Licences in England for the most recent five years for which the information is available is given in the table below. YearVolume (Cubic Metres overbark)Area Licenced (Hectares)20121,388,00025,98520131,299,00023,64120141,466,00019,16320151,734,00023,85620162,542,00058,198Total8,429,000150,843 There is no obligation to fell when approval has been granted and approval can be valid for up to 10 years. This means that approval in a given year will not necessarily relate to the felling in that year. In the vast majority of cases where clear felling has been approved there will be a restocking requirement - so the volume and area of felling approved does not correspond to a reduction in woodland cover. The above table does not include felling approved on the Public Forest Estate which is exempt from the requirement for a licence and is not recorded centrally or felling approved in legacy English Woodland Grant Schemes.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control

baroness jones of whitchurch: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to test culled badgers forbovine tuberculosis.

baroness jones of whitchurch: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to verify the levels of bovine tuberculosis in badgers.

lord gardiner of kimble: In the 2016 badger control operations we initiated development of a TB surveillance programme on a small sample of badger carcasses obtained from the culling operations. Tissue sampling, followed by culturing and genotyping is the most reliable method for diagnosing TB in badgers, but challenges remain with this technique when the quality of the carcasses is variable. More information on the 2016 TB surveillance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bovine-tb-surveillance-in-wildlife-in-england-2016-to-2017. Further work is planned to refine our methodology. During the Randomised Badger Culling Trial, detailed post-mortems of culled badgers in the High Risk Area found that approximately one-third of badgers were infected. In addition, the APHA have a long running study of the wild badger population at Woodchester Park in Gloucestershire where 25% to 30% of the population test positive for Tuberculosis. A separate study in a different part of Gloucestershire in 2006 found that 53% of wild badgers tested positive.

Hill Farming

baroness jones of whitchurch: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of a no deal Brexit outcome on upland farmers.

lord gardiner of kimble: The UK is pursuing a bold and comprehensive economic partnership with the EU that provides the greatest possible tariff-free and frictionless trade. In the event of a no deal Brexit, the UK will be free to determine its own trade policy and we will be able to set applied tariffs unilaterally on food imports at a rate of our choosing or to create Autonomous Tariff Rate Quotas. It is therefore difficult to model precise impacts since it would depend on the policy choices that both the UK and EU might make in the event of there being no deal. The government is aware that the sheep sector is more dependent on access to the EU market than other sectors of British agriculture and that is why securing tariff free access for British lamb is our priority. However, in a no deal scenario where both the EU and UK apply tariffs at the Bound Tariff rate, a likely outcome would be that some mixed beef and sheep enterprises in the UK would react to market signals and diversify their production balance to increase beef production in order to substitute beef imports that currently come from Ireland. In addition, on leaving the EU, we will replace the CAP with a new, improved system of rewards and incentives that will reward upland farmers for the delivery of public goods and the powers to deliver this will be introduced in an Agriculture Bill during this session of parliament.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control

baroness jones of whitchurch: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of the published cost of policing the badger cull in Cheshire of £831,000 for 48 days in 2017, what assessmentthey havemade of the cost benefit analysis of pursuing that cull.

lord gardiner of kimble: An analysis of the costs and benefits of extending badger control in 2018 will be published later this year. Previous assessments can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bovine-tb-badger-control-policy-value-for-money-analysis

Public Footpaths: Coastal Areas

baroness kennedy of cradley: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much has been paid in grants to land owners and access authorities from the England Coastal Path Establishment Fund.

lord gardiner of kimble: The England Coast Path Establishment Fund was set up in April with funds from the Rural Development Fund for England. It will provide grants from 2018/19 onwards. No grants have been paid by the fund to date.

Northern Ireland Office

Northern Ireland Office: Legal Costs

lord empey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what professional fee payments they have made to the law firms (1) Winters & Co, 9–15 Queen Street, Belfast,(2) KRW Law, 9–15 Queen Street, Belfast, and (3) Madden & Finucane, 88 Castle Street, Belfast, in each of the last ten years for which figures are available.

lord duncan of springbank: The expenditure incurred by the Northern Ireland Office, both directly and indirectly through the Crown Solicitor’s Office, for the period requested is shown below: Paid by NIO Financial YearsWinters & CoKRW LawMadden & FinucaneTotal2013-14--£11,635£11,6352014-15----2016-17--£4,923£4,9232017-18--£1,608£1,608Total--£18,166£18,166 Paid by CSO Financial YearsWinters & CoKRW LawMadden & FinucaneTotal2013-14£12,500£10,375£10,375£33,2502014-15-£11,750£4,165£15,9152016-17-£33,000-£33,0002017-18----Total£12,500£55,125£14,540£82,165 The Northern Ireland Office does not hold the information for the financial years prior to 2013-14. To obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost.

Terrorism: Northern Ireland

baroness suttie: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of the figures given in Table 16 of theNorthern Ireland Terrorism Legislation: Annual Statistics 2015–16on the number of examinations under Schedule 7 to the Terrorism Act 2000 and the number of resultant detentions, how many times those powers were used in each of the last five years (1) by the Police Service of Northern Ireland, immigration officers, customs officers respectively, (2) in airports, seaports or the border area; and how many (a) referrals to immigration, HMRC or other agencies, and (b) detentions for immigration, customs or other purposes, resulted.

lord duncan of springbank: In each of the past five years the powers in Schedule 7 to the Terrorism Act 2000 were used by the Police Service of Northern Ireland the following number of occasions: YearPersonsUnaccompanied freightTotalDetentions2017-2018Figures for 2017-2018 are not yet available2016-20171,9151,5763,49102015-20162,8011,6044,40502014-2015n/an/a3,91702013-2014n/an/a4,1570 These powers have not been used in Northern Ireland by HMRC or Border Force in the past five years.

Department for International Trade

Department for International Trade: Pay

lord adonis: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many (1) staff, and (2) consultants, at the Department for International Trade are paid salaries in excess of £140,000; and to what posts those salaries apply.

baroness fairhead: Information on high earning staff (£150,000 and above) in the Civil Service is in the public domain, accessible via the transparency data reports on gov.uk. The most recent version is the senior officials 'high earners' salaries as at 30 September 2017: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/693864/_150k_2017_Master_for_publication_March_18_update.csv/previewThe Department for International Trade (DIT) does not have any staff paid more than £140,000 but less than £150,000.UK Export Finance (UKEF) has one member of staff paid more than £140,000 but less than £150,000, in the post of Director of Business Group.The Department does not hold information on the pay received by individual consultants from their employing company.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012

lord bird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of each of the recommendations of the report by Social Enterprise UK, Our money, our future, published in 2017, on the effect of the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 on public sector spending.

lord ashton of hyde: We welcome Social Enterprise UK's report 'Our money, Our Future'. We are considering the report's recommendations as we develop our Civil Society Strategy through engagement with public sector commissioners, procurement and civil society representatives. In addition, the recently appointed Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise Sector Crown Representative is meeting stakeholders to assess how to increase social value through commissioning. Social value will be an important element in the Civil Society Strategy which we will publish later this year.

Gambling: Suicide

lord chadlington: To ask Her Majesty's Government whatis theirestimateof the number of annual gambling-related suicides in the UK; and what plans they have, if any, to conduct further research in this area.

lord ashton of hyde: Data on the cause of death in cases of suicide is not recorded centrally with a level of granularity that would list gambling as a factor. Government therefore does not have an estimate of the number of suicides each year where gambling is involved. The government takes suicide prevention very seriously and updated the Cross-Government Suicide Prevention Strategy in 2017. We are also encouraging Local Authorities to implement prevention plans to provide support at a local level. A focus on reducing gambling-related harm, protecting the vulnerable and making sure that those experiencing problems are getting the help they need is key to the government Review of Gaming Machines and Social Responsibility. The consultation closed on 23 January, and we will publish our response in due course.

Gaming Machines

lord porter of spalding: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the economic and social costs of providing welfare and support services as a result of the high stakes being gambled on fixed-odds betting terminals.

lord ashton of hyde: Measuring the cost of problem gambling is a complicated task. The study by The Institute of Public Policy Research “Cards on the Table”, published in December 2016, estimated that the cost to the Government associated with problem gamblers ranged between £260m and £1.16bn. This reflects an estimate of the costs of public services for those individuals, but it does not capture the wider impact of problem gambling and gambling-related harm to the UK economy. The attached report can be found here: https://about.gambleaware.org/media/1367/cards-on-the-table_dec16.pdf Building on this analysis, a report produced by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), which I attach, (published January 2018 and found here: http://www.coin-opcommunity.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/CEBR-Report-final-Jan-2018.pdf) provided estimates of the cost to government of problem gambling specifically related to B2 gaming machines. This analysis estimates that problem gamblers linked to B2 machines could be associated with an excess fiscal cost in the region of £210 million and in welfare terms, the population of B2 problem gamblers could be imposing a cost of £1.5 billion on themselves, their families and their wider social networks. GambleAware is commissioning research to improve the understanding of gambling-related harm which should lead to a set of metrics which we can use to measure the impact of gambling-related harm on a wider scale. We continue to take problem gambling and gambling-related harm seriously and welcome developments to better understand this issue. 



Public Policy Research “Cards on the Table” report
(PDF Document, 969.66 KB)




CEBR report on B2 gaming machines
(PDF Document, 1.78 MB)